Each dentist's specific
economic predicament, their community's position and the overall perspective creates many businesses challenges, but also provides opportunities of wide and prosperous potential!
Therefore, dental practices needs to respond in various ways to encourage consumers to make dentistry a higher priority.
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| STOP: Waiting For Results, Sitting On Hands, Watching Time Go By |
Dental consumers will keep delaying without reminders of value
(of not waiting, of what is out there...), which is especially true in this 'manufactured' environment.
Manufactured because dentistry is different, it is needed, and after a while a
'must' for those patients who would have gone to the dentist sooner without a bad 'economic climate'.
Additionally, general dental consumers and even current patients have always needed a higher level of communication. Better and more consistent dental marketing is used to upgrade their perspective to accept advanced dentistry treatments. Stronger, more comprehensive, referral skills will help patients encourage friends, family and colleagues/coworkers to consider higher level dentistry not just moving to a 'nicer dentist' or doing merely traditional drill, fill and fit only what's in their insurance till.
While regular preventive dental visits can be delayed without a short-term downside (pain), significant oral health problems (gum disease, tooth loss) and 'personal driven' reasons (replace missing, damaged teeth/tooth before job interview) will not wait for an economic recovery.
When smile emergencies arise, and toothaches flare up, dentists and dental offices should have a public presence to keep patient numbers on a upward growth trajectory as well as improve value acceptance internally.
Dentists who offer high value services such as biomimetic focused approach, comprehensive periodontal management, Invisalign braces, tooth replacing dental implants, cosmetic dentistry veneers, and life, health rejuvenating smile makeovers should make sure they are the ones these patients will
know of, already 'trust', see as providing deep value, when they start looking.
For example: Sedation dental marketing is also a way to move consumers who have put off dental treatment because of fear to get the care they need now. Presenting multiple
smile makeover transformations of people from various life circumstances, perspectives and situations is beneficial to making the point that better care is not just for celebrities and TV newscasters.
While specific ideas of approaching marketing is important (like above) too many dentists start out with specifics and get caught up in the details before they understand the overall picture.
To that end, below find three ways dentists should know about dental marketing before jumping off.
Being a Profitable Dental Practice ELEMENTS in 2012... Beyond
The Best Dental Marketing Plan has THREE Elements
ONE: Be A Publicly, Proactive, Persistent Dental Practice
- One of the biggest areas of new dental patient development
- Also Prepares the 'attention' of patients, consumers not considering dentistry right now
- Includes a traditional marketing element like dental postcards not just an online presence
- People need to be made aware of the dentist's cosmetic, restorative expertise and services
- While public marketing maybe more expensive to begin, done right, dentists improve things more broadly, faster, geographically targeted
- Waiting for referrals, or consumers to think about or searchers is risky at any time, let alone a downturn
TWO: Completely Cover Each Current Dental Patient's Angle
- Patients want others to know about their dentist if they do things well
- This is hardly ever done well - it is often generic, impersonal, and infrequent
- Referrals and smile makeover case acceptance result from effectively communicating value
- Find more ways to connect with dental patients and more formats to ask for referrals
- Add elements that say something 'new/advanced' about the dentist, office
- While standard referrals still make great patients, the new landscape requires enhanced methods
- Use dental technology to better inform patient of the value dentistry services provide and the dentist's expertise
THREE: Network Your Internet Connection: Dental Website, Social Media
- Websites, Social Media (Facebook, Twitter) is where current dental patients, and consumers are, and will be looking for dentists, offices
- Thousands of ways to attract new dental care patients online
- When Online evasion is practiced, dentists shrink their community influence, referral power, expertise value
- The real 'competition' dentist's have is when they do one thing, if anything, and often haphazardly
- Dentists must keep adding online dental marketing repertoire, weaving in your highest value services
Downturn Dental Marketing Conclusion
Comprehensive (yet affordable) assertive and persistent public and internal communication is essential for dentists, dental offices to be viable today and long term. Dental marketing is not only a good thing it is the only thing that consistently gets consumers and patients enough information in the quantity, quality, and the right time of day for them to absorb it effectively.
To achieve the success dentists want this year, or any year, requires getting the marketing they need to reach out to the community of those just waiting for someone to speak up, and say,
'Dental care value is RIGHT HERE!"
Dental Marketing Commentary by
Dick Chwalek
NicheDental.com
Niche Dental Consulting, coaching to comprehensive, is for guiding dentists (like you) to better, faster, and fit-your-needs solutions.
Original Published Version
